CVE-2025-71411: Aircraft Communication DoS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-71411 Overview

CVE-2025-71411 describes a resource management flaw where broadcast control frames can disconnect multiple aircraft simultaneously over a shared radio-frequency link. The disconnections force pilots to re-establish communications and re-request clearances, increasing controller workload and delaying flight operations. The weakness maps to [CWE-770] (Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) and is exploitable remotely over the air interface.

Critical Impact
Simultaneous forced disconnections of multiple aircraft can cause delayed clearances and overload air traffic controllers, degrading availability of communications between aircraft and ground stations.

Affected Products

Aviation communications equipment identified in CISA ICS Advisory ICSA-26-219-01
Specific vendor and product identifiers were not published in the National Vulnerability Database entry
Deployments using the affected radio-frequency control protocol

Discovery Timeline

2026-08-07 - CVE-2025-71411 published to NVD
2026-08-10 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-71411

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability allows an attacker with the ability to transmit on the relevant radio frequency to send broadcast control frames that cause receiving aircraft to disconnect. Because the frames are broadcast, a single transmission can affect multiple aircraft at once. The result is not corruption of flight data or elevated privilege, but disruption of availability for air-to-ground communications.

The downstream operational impact is significant. Air traffic controllers must reissue clearances, re-establish contact, and manage traffic without confirmed communications for the affected aircraft. In busy sectors, this can cascade into wider traffic-flow disruption.

Root Cause

The underlying weakness is improper limitation on the processing of unauthenticated or unthrottled control frames [CWE-770]. Receivers act on broadcast control frames without validating that a legitimate authority issued them, and without rate or scope constraints that would prevent a single transmission from affecting an entire coverage area.

Attack Vector

An attacker within radio range transmits crafted control frames on the target frequency. The attack requires proximity sufficient for the signal to reach receiving aircraft, but does not require prior authentication to the ground network or physical access to aviation infrastructure. Exploitation complexity is high because the attacker must generate protocol-compliant frames on the correct RF channel.

The vulnerability manifests when receivers process a broadcast frame that instructs them to drop their session. See the CISA ICS Advisory ICSA-26-219-01 for protocol-level technical detail.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-71411

Indicators of Compromise

Clusters of simultaneous, unexpected disconnections across multiple aircraft on the same frequency or sector
Broadcast control frames arriving from signal sources whose direction or power profile does not match authorized ground stations
Elevated volume of clearance re-requests and re-authentication events on controller consoles

Detection Strategies

Deploy RF spectrum monitoring at ground stations to flag anomalous broadcast frames and unauthorized transmitters
Correlate disconnection events across aircraft to identify time-clustered patterns consistent with a broadcast attack
Log and review all control-frame events at ground infrastructure for source, signal strength, and direction of arrival

Monitoring Recommendations

Establish a baseline for normal disconnection rates per sector and alert on statistically significant deviations
Forward RF and controller-console telemetry to a central analytics platform for cross-site correlation
Coordinate with adjacent facilities to detect wide-area interference patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-71411

Immediate Actions Required

Review the CISA ICS Advisory ICSA-26-219-01 and identify whether affected equipment is deployed in your environment
Coordinate with the equipment vendor to obtain firmware or configuration updates addressing the broadcast frame handling behavior
Brief air traffic controllers on the disruption pattern so simultaneous disconnections are recognized quickly

Patch Information

NVD does not list a specific patch reference at the time of publication. Operators should follow guidance in CISA ICS Advisory ICSA-26-219-01 and apply vendor updates when available.

Workarounds

Enable RF direction-finding at ground stations to locate unauthorized transmitters
Prepare fallback communication procedures so controllers can manage traffic during simultaneous disconnection events
Restrict acceptance of control frames to those originating from authenticated ground infrastructure where the protocol allows

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# Configuration example not applicable - refer to vendor guidance in CISA ICSA-26-219-01